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Widespread flooding hits Western Washington counties

Widespread flooding impacted multiple communities in Western Washington Friday, especially in Skagit County.

A flood watch was in effect for most Western Washington rivers. Read about current weather alerts here.

>> Download KIRO 7's free weather app to receive weather alerts and find the latest forecasts.

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Skagit County

Chopper 7 flew over Burlington, where farmland and homes were surrounded by water on Friday. A rescue crew boat floated over streets as the nearby Skagit River overflowed.

>> See a list of Skagit County road closures here.

Rescue crews searched around and inside houses for people possibly needing help, but as of early Friday afternoon, it was unclear if any rescues were made.

Also in Skagit County, an apparent eroded bank left a shed dangling. Read about that here.

>> See photos of the flooding Skagit County here

In Mount Vernon, the Skagit River crested Friday at 33.15 feet, the highest water level since 2006.
Water overflowed onto the Riverwalk early Friday morning, but the new flood wall prevented any flooding to the historic downtown.

Mount Vernon began building the near 30-million dollar flood wall in 2010 to keep downtown Mount Vernon dry – a test today, the City says the flood wall passed.

Thanksgiving Day flooding near Hamilton

There was flooding seen Thursday on the Baker River, which is a southward-flowing tributary of the Skagit River in Skagit County.

The town of Hamilton was flooded and evacuated fort the first time in 11 years. The fire chief and the mayor activated the emergency evacuation sirens at 8 a.m.

At noon, the evacuation became mandatory. Some had to leave Thanksgiving food uncooked.

Hamilton is a town that used to have major flood events every three years, including 2003 and 2006. The flooding Thursday falls about 10 feet short of the record, but it's still a jarring displacement for a town of 300 people.

KIRO 7 was told the river is slowly receding, so residents should be able to come back at some point Friday.

King County

The King County Flood Warning Center issued a Phase 2 flood alert for the Tolt River.

"As of 1:45 p.m., the Tolt River at Carnation was flowing at 3,750 cubic feet per second, which is just above the Phase 2 flood alert threshold of 3,500 CFS," King County spokesman Doug Williams said in a statement. "At these flows, low-lying areas along the Tolt River upstream of Carnation could experience minor flooding."

The White River in south King County also was at a Phase 2 flood alert level Thursday afternoon, with potential flooding in areas along the river near Auburn and Pacific.

The Snoqualmie River remained at a Phase 3 flood alert level, with widespread flooding possible across portions of the Snoqualmie Valley.

The King County Flood Warning Center issued flood alerts for the Snoqualmie and Skykomish rivers on Wednesday.

Snohomish County

On the eve of Thanksgiving the small community of Silvana was stuck because of flooding. Many routes to the Snohomish County town were under water. It's water that came rushing through in the afternoon - disabling the town and stunning residents and businesses who were getting ready for the holiday. Read about Silvana flooding here.

In Snohomish County, a flood warning was in effect for the South Fork of the Stillaguamish River near Granite Falls down to the Blue Spruce area.  Heavy rain over the west slopes of the Cascades drove it above flood stage early Wednesday.

PHOTOS: Stillaguwamish River floods part of Arlington

The most severe flooding is in Arlington, where forecast flooding increased from moderate to major severity.

SR 530 has 6 to 8 inches of water over the road in the Arlington Heights area.  The Washington State Department of Transportation was monitoring.

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